


i will avenge my ghost

by earlvsunsets



Category: Heroes of Might and Magic (Video Games), Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Magic, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Platonic Relationships, Team as Family, homm 3 au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-30
Updated: 2018-04-30
Packaged: 2019-04-25 23:29:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14389365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earlvsunsets/pseuds/earlvsunsets
Summary: When a war breaks out in their land and they have to fight for their countries, a certain thing changes everything and forces them to leave everything behind. The six heroes need to learn how to care for one another but, with another hero joining them, they quickly realize things won't be as easy with him.





	i will avenge my ghost

**Author's Note:**

> a few things before y'all start:  
> \- this is very loosely based off heroes of might and magic 3 which is a Very Old™ video game that i absolutely l o v e  
> \- by 'very loosely' i Mean that certain things might not be consistent with the games actual story and i just made them up  
> \- towns, town names, creatures etc are all taken from the actual game, the actual storyline i came up with myself  
> \- also english is my second language please be gentle im just a teenage boy trying to write some (Hopefully) cool stuff
> 
> i hope you like it uwu

Hundreds of years ago, a newly found continent was divided by six kingdoms. Four of them built towns and set borders on the surface, while the other two, upon finding the Gate, claimed the underground. 

 

They lived in perfect harmony, staying as allies for an incredibly long time. But times have changed. 

 

After years of peace, the countries declared war on each other, wanting to take over the land, despite most countries being spread over multiple continents.  They were prepared, of course. With every generation of heroes, in every country, in every town, there were the  _ chosen ones. _ Children with unnatural abilities, able to lead the kingdom's troops in case of a war.    
  
  
One of them, Hyunwoo was a mage from Cragmoor, a town in the south part of Krewlod. Situated in the desert area, housing creatures like goblins, cyclops, orcs and behemoths. The monsters are known for being dangerous and barbaric - perhaps that's why it was Hyunwoo that was chosen to lead them. The hero has natural leadership skills and can keep the creatures at bay, not making them fight unless it's important. 

  
  


  
  
The second hero, Hoseok was a Druid with an powerful harmonic relationship with the land and nature, although some say he hasn't fought anyone ever since he's arrived at Ceiliedgh - a town deep in the woods of AvLee, surrounded by trees and amazing plants, inhabited by elves and centaurs for millions of years. Hoseok chose to become the hero that will fight in the name of his people, even though he did not want to do that at all. His specialty is creatures very similar to him - unicorns. Both seem to understand each other incredibly well and have unusual spell casting abilities. He's been incredibly understanding and gentle with them from the beginning, and, although they're generally untrusting of humans, they seem to like him just as much. 

  
  
  


  
  


The third hero comes from Tirith, a town in the north of Bracada, always covered in snow. His name is Minhyuk - a young wizard with incredible magic skills. Due to his intelligence, the town officials chose him to lead the kingdom's creatures,  bound into service by powerful magic or allied with the kingdom through ancient pacts.

 

He's able to work with genies very efficiently, which is why many people fear him, although he is not intimidating or dangerous at all, quickly becoming friends with the other heroes after meeting them during one of many missions. It's obvious that he's more than a little hesitant to fight in the war - but he doesn't have a choice.

  
  
  


The rulers of Castellatus picked a young cleric by the name of Kihyun to represent them and Erathia. His unusual first aid skills make him the perfect leader for the already harmonious troops. The town is one of the few ones where it's mostly humans that fight, which makes them easier to lead. Archangels in his army led to him, too, being feared around the land, as the creatures, although good, can be extremely dangerous. 

 

He was taught everything by a man that maintained the biggest monastery in the whole kingdom and his army now has strongest of all the monks.

  
  
  
  


The two youngest heroes, who have been the chosen ones for a short time but, due to their skills, are considered the best.

  
  
  
  
  
  


Coming from the underground city of Blackquarter in Deyja, a young necromancer named Hyungwon. Perhaps  _ young _ isn't the best title to give to him, though - his use of dark magic slowly drained the life from him, effectively making him immortal, in a sense. When he was still a teenager his practices led to him becoming a lich - an undead creature fueled only by magic.

 

It is important to know that while Hyungwon himself is a lich, he's not exactly the same as the ones that fight in his army. His necromancy and earth magic skills are completely unusual, as heroes  _ that _ skilled do not often appear in the land. They're merely a vessel filled with magic. He's somehow still resembling a human.

  
  
  


The youngest of the chosen ones.

 

A warlock who focuses on the pursuit of magical knowledge over any other values, learning magic for the power it gives to achieve his goals. 

 

Born in Malev, in the east part of Nighon in the underground, the young hero was named Jooheon. Both his parents have been the chosen ones as well - they didn't exactly expect him to become one too. But he is truly something different; like the whole new generation of heroes. Although the boy is quite timid and very kind in person, he's one of the only ones able to tame the creatures. Most of them, the troglodytes, the medusas - they're not the most intelligent. And yet, he's still able to lead them. Perhaps that's because he treats all of them equally - he completely looks past the fact that the troglodytes are the weakest and least intelligent creatures in his army; he acts like they're the same as the black dragons - the most powerful of their kind. 

  
  
  
  


The young heroes all know each other, the countries continuing to be allies for as long as possible, before the actual war starts. They've all been on many missions together - Kihyun and Hyungwon, for example, are one of the best combinations. They're polar opposites, but one of them has things that the other one doesn't - that makes them the perfect team. 

 

The concept of war scared all of them, obviously. No one wanted that, but the kingdoms wanted to become owners of that one piece of land. 

 

The war, however, never happened.  

  
Because a new hero appeared. 

 

One that came from Hellwind.

 

Hellwind, a town deep down in the south of the underground, is one seen as pure evil. It represents the kingdom of Eofol; a volcanic wasteland that once was a beautiful, teeming with life land until it was taken over by demons. The inhabitants of the town always kept to themselves and the kingdom never agreed to an alliance; meaning that they're the only ones that were never at peace with other countries and throughout all the generations of heroes no one knew about them. 

 

Certain people have said that due of the demonic presences there, the heroes don't last long. They're either driven out of the town and move to a different island and become mercenaries or, they can't stand all the torture and abuse that happens there and choose to get themselves killed on purpose or, in a few cases, end their own lives.

 

The main reason why the war didn't happen was because of that hero. All the countries sent out their representatives for a mission, their biggest one so far. The six are meant to kill the enemy hero and then, whoever does that, claims Hellwind which then gets burned down, making Eofol lose a part of their country.

  
  
  
  


“Did you hear about how heavily guarded Hellwind is?” Asks Minhyuk, suddenly growing nervous as they approach the Gate. He and the other heroes from the surface are about to enter the endless maze of tunnels, but they've decided to take a short break to prepare themselves for what's about to come.

 

“Of course.” Kihyun mutters softly, shifting nervously before hopping off his horse and deciding to sit in the grass. “Thousands of imps and hundreds of devils. In total, they have a bigger army than all of us combined.” He sighs, playing with a necklace that he found in a treasure chest the day before. It's supposed to increase his and his army's morale, but now, he seems to be the most anxious - his and the enemy's troops  _ despise _ each other, to the point where their hate might affect the fight.

 

That makes a heavy silence fall over them. The knowledge that at least one of the six will fail - lose all their troops and have to go back to their town with shame. There's no way it'll take only one person to take over Hellwind. There's a chance that all of them will lose; that makes them dead in everyone's eyes.  _ They're _ the chosen ones and that means that they absolutely cannot lose.

 

The silence is eventually broken by the sounds of horses approaching and Hyunwoo and Hoseok walking alongside them. While Minhyuk and Kihyun stayed beside the Gate, the others went looking for a place to make sure their catapults and first aid tents are in a good shape, as well as making sure they're ready to cast many spells. “Are you ready to go?” Hoseok calls out, a smile present on his face. The hood of his cloak is pulled over his head, in a way to shield himself from the warm afternoon sun. 

 

Kihyun nods and he and Minhyuk get on their horses, calling out to their troops to follow them before venturing into the darkness. 

 

They hate it. The way the cold, damp air instantly hits their faces, making a chill go down their spines, how the horses as well as their troops suddenly grow tense and anxious. The dimly lit tunnels that are seemingly never ending make it very easy to get lost. If they didn't have a map, it'd take them a lot more time, and they don't have much of it. 

 

Wandering around the dark tunnels they soon find the crossroads, Hyungwon, Jooheon and their armies waiting for them near the road to Hellwind and, unfortunately, they look hesitant. The six heroes exchange greetings and then, Hyungwon speaks up. 

 

“I don't think I want to do this anymore.” He mumbles, shaking his head. Jooheon nods in agreement. 

 

Minhyuk almost jumps off his horse in shock, heart racing. “You  _ have  _ to!” He yells. Refusing to fight would make them become hated in the town and have to move to another one with the knowledge that they've  _ failed. _

 

Jooheon shakes his head. “No, you don't understand. We can't do that.” There's a pleading look in his eyes and the four are shocked. Jooheon, while kind-hearted and warm, doesn't hesitate. And he never refuses to do what he's told.

 

“Why?” Hoseok asks, confused. He slips off the hood, revealing his pale face and eyebrows raised in question. 

 

“You'll see.”

 

The road to Hellwind is long, dust flies into the air with every step taken and the smell of sulfur grows stronger the closer they get. They can soon feel the heat on their faces. 

 

Their battle is about to begin. 

 

The six choose to try from the oldest, seeing as the youngest two were not going to fight. 

 

As Hyunwoo’s horse approaches, he sees it. The thousands of creatures behind the walls, screaming in anger. They not only have to defeat the hero's troops, but the towns whole army.

 

There's no way they'll be able to do that.

 

Upon seeing the enemy hero at the gates to Hellwind, shouts fill the air and soon, the  _ chosen one _ appears, along with his own army. Something doesn't feel right, though.

 

The boy is pale and frail, unsteadily swaying on his horse as if he was going to pass out. Hyunwoo's heart sinks. He looks young,  _ too young _ to be involved in something like this. There are dark rings under his eyes and his cheeks look sunken in, like he hasn't eaten or slept in weeks. 

 

Knowing what goes on there, chances are he really hasn't.

 

Hyunwoo almost backs out, just now seeing what the two meant. They probably saw him earlier and it made them hesitant. 

 

The hero raises his spell book and a look of pain flashes across his face as he casts one. A lighting bolt slams right into Hyunwoo's wolves and they flop lifelessly to the ground. Unfortunately for him, he has the last of his troops left, but he's not surprised. He knows it'll take at least two more people to make a significant change in the numbers.

 

One more round of the enemy attacks and spells and Hyunwoo's defeated. He lost and now, he can't go back. 

 

The oldest hero goes back to the others. Alone. He lost but, somehow, he doesn't feel bad. Suddenly, all logical thought he had are replaced with worry.  _ This isn't right _ , he thinks. They have to do something about that kid, anything. 

 

Hyungwon and Jooheon have a look of understanding on their faces, while the others just look uneasy.

 

“We can't do that.” Hyunwoo says, voice quiet. The boy's face is stuck in his head and it makes him feel sick. 

 

“Why? What happened there?” Minhyuk asks softly, hands clasped together nervously. 

 

Hyunwoo gets off the horse and sits on the ground instead. He sighs, running a hand through his hair tiredly. “That kid… he doesn't belong there. I can't do that.” 

 

Jooheon looks at him, playing with the rings he's wearing. “I… have an idea.” He almost whispers. Everyone turns to look at him questioningly. “His army isn't  _ incredibly  _ big, right? The town's is. It's possible to defeat him and then… he'll get banished, probably.” 

 

Kihyun doesn't look convinced. “But what can we do after he does?”

 

Hyunwoo clears his throat. “I lost already. If I come back, they're going to banish me as well.” His throat constricts painfully at the thought of not being able to return home. He's going to have to move to another island, alone. 

 

“Maybe we shouldn't come back.” Minhyuk whispers sadly, eyes trained on the ground. It seems like he's already accepted his defeat and it breaks Hyunwoo's heart. 

 

“We could travel to Solium.” Hoseok suggests, although he doesn't sound completely sure. Solium is a town near the sea in a yet to be named country on the surface, one that stays neutral and is the best refuge for banished heroes. It's on another continent, a bit far from where they're from but it'll be worth it. 

 

Hums of agreement are heard afterwards, even though they don't look that happy. While they all truly loved serving their country at first, it is an extremely stressful and challenging thing to do and now, after preparing so long for a war that might never happen - they're burnt out, sick of all expectations people have for them; all they want to do is disappear for a little while. 

 

And, after all, being a mercenary isn't  _ that _ bad. 

 

“We… need another person, maybe two, to defeat the kid. What about the others?” Hyunwoo asks, rubbing his hands over his thighs anxiously. He wishes there was another way to end it. 

 

Hyungwon shrugs. “The others can try to fight the rest, I guess. It'll be easier to leave if we don't have any troops left.” He says slowly, a bit hesitant now. His eyes glimmer with new found hope for a better life. 

 

Hoseok raises his hand. “I can go next.” He mutters quietly, getting back on his horse and going towards the city without waiting for a response. His muscles are visibly tense as he waits for his army to follow him.

 

Minhyuk gets up and rubs dusts off his clothes. “I’ll go after him.”

 

Hyungwon, Jooheon and Kihyun share a look. Parts of them are glad they don't have to fight the young hero, but at the same time they don't feel good about losing their entire army, as they got attached to them after all this time.

 

While waiting for Hoseok to come back, they don't speak, all thinking about what they're about to do. They're about to end a huge chapter of their lives, completely change the way they've been living and leave everything behind. 

 

The wait feels like forever. When the druid finally comes back by himself, his eyes are red rimmed and he's looking like he just saw a ghost. He sits down on the ground beside the others and lowers his head, silent. Minhyuk leaves wordlessly. 

 

The silence is crushing. Hyunwoo wants to leave, but the worry for the boy is keeping him in place.  _ He's too young for that.  _

 

Minhyuk takes less time than Hoseok did, but he looks ten times worse. One of the genies from his army trails behind him with its head down. The hero hops off the horse and slides down to the ground before he starts crying.

 

Kihyun, shocked and a bit confused, pats his back. “ _ They're going to kill him. _ ” Minhyuk sobs, hiding his face in his hands. He sounds completely terrified and everyone freezes. “I-I overheard things… they're  _ so angry _ . They want to chase him out of town and if he's not fast enough-” 

  
  


Kihyun gets up suddenly, pulling the still crying Minhyuk up with him. “Hyungwon. Jooheon, one of you. Attack. Cause a distraction. Hyunwoo, Hoseok. There are two ways out of Hellwind. We'll go one way and you two the other.  _ We have to find him. _ ” His voice is stern, and he's frowning but they all know he's just as scared as they all are. They leave their troops and their horses behind.

 

The four stop at a crossroads leading to both entrances to Hellwind.  _ He has to take one of the roads. _ They decide to not waste time and after agreeing on meeting with the others after they either find him or they're sure he's not there and split up. 

 

Kihyun and Minhyuk take the left road and almost run in desperation. They completely ignore the treasure chests and resources laying there; there are things far more important than that and if they don't find him, they'll come back for them later. Minhyuk is nervous and it's painfully obvious, in the way he grabbed Kihyun's hand and is now holding onto it so tightly it might break, in the way his knees shake when they stop for a while. He doesn't know why seeing the boy triggered such a strong reaction but he's filled with determination and worry. Despite not knowing him, he's definitely going to blame himself if anything happens. 

 

Hyunwoo and Hoseok don't seem nervous as they walk slowly on the right road. But they are. Their hearts are racing with all the possibilities and their muscles are tense from the stress.  Hoseok loosens the strings pulling his cloak together and takes it off. The closer they get, the more they feel the heat on their faces and the more anxious they become. What if they don't find him? Hyunwoo's mind races with what might happen to the boy if he doesn't make it in time.    

 

They suddenly begin to hear fast footsteps that grow louder with every second. Hyunwoo steps forward, holding one arm against Hoseok's chest in an attempt to stop him from going any further, heart beating a bit faster. Whoever is running towards them stumbles as they're turning to look behind them and fall down, their small figure sliding down the dirt road due to the speed and the impact. Hoseok takes a step back, hand clutching the back of Hyunwoo's cape in fear. 

 

Hyunwoo, however, stays in place but freezes when the person lifts their head up and he locks eyes with the terrified eyes of the boy he fought  minutes before. Now that he's able to get a good look at him, his blood runs cold. 

 

The hood he's wearing over his face has holes burned into it. His entire body is shaking, tears are streaming down his face, making clear tracks in the blood and dust covering it. He's small, fragile looking almost, clothes hanging off his petite frame. There are very obvious bruise and scars littering his exposed arms. Upon realizing Hyunwoo is staring he attempts to get up, but his legs suddenly give up from the exhaustion. Luckily the older hero catches him in time. 

 

“Please,” the boy cries, clinging to Hyunwoo's arms with desperation. “Don't let them kill me, please,  _ I don't want to die- _ ”

  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> it's hard to describe a game that came out in 1999 and is literally older than me.
> 
> but! i hope you like it nonetheless because i really enjoyed writing this!!
> 
> see y'all whenever im going to finish the next chapter haha


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